LAS VEGAS  Samsung isn't going big with HDTVs or focusing on 3D technology like other companies at CES 2012 (though it has its fair share of both), but is instead going back to a technology that made a splash a few years ago but didn't see significant action: OLED screens. The company announced its first consumer-available Super OLED HDTV, an as-yet-unnamed 55-inch screen that will be available in the second half of this year.

The new Super OLED HDTV will have every feature Samsung offers in screens, matching its 8000 series HDTVs, which are getting refreshed and seeing UNES8000 edge-lit versions and PNE8000 plasma versions. The OLED HDTV joins LG's as the world's biggest OLED-based screens at 55 inches. It is 3D-capable and features a new dual-core processor that can run multiple Samsung Apps (Samsung's downloadable app market, similar to HDTV app markets on LG and Panasonic HDTVs). Multitasking HDTV apps is a new feature outide of Google TV products. The OLED HDTV has Samsung's Smart Interaction technology, which adjusts the picture through motion control, voice control, and face recognition.

The Samsung UNES8000 and PNE8000 don't use OLED technology, but they have the same dual-core processors, 3D capabilities, and Smart Interaction technology as the OLED screen. They will also likely be available before the OLED HDTV, which Samsung won't ship until fall. Samsung has not announced pricing or availability for any of the new HDTVs, but, considering that the D8000 series retailed for well over $2,000 at smaller sizes and that all three are the company's highest-end displays, they won't be cheap.

OLED technology has seen some progress in the last few years with smartphones, but besides a few experimental models like the Sony XEL-1, a 11-inch screen that retailed for several thousand dollars in 2008, it hasn't been adopted in home entertainment. Companies like Samsung, Sony, and LG claim that OLED displays offer better picture quality than LED-backlit LCD or plasma, and considering the XEL-1 received an Editors' Choice despite being a $2,500 11-inch monitor on a lamp stand, they could be right. We'll find out if that is the case when we test Samsung and LG's OLED HDTVs in the PCMag Labs later this year.

About the Author

Will Greenwald has been covering consumer technology for a decade, and has served on the editorial staffs of CNET.com, Sound & Vision, and Maximum PC. His work and analysis has been seen in GamePro, Tested.com, Geek.com, and several other publications. He currently covers consumer electronics in the PC Labs as the in-house home entertainment expert... See Full Bio

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